By Mzukona Mantshontsho
Malibongwe Ridge Housing Development is in Cosmo City, North of Johannesburg in the Gauteng province, South Africa. The Cosmo City Development is the first public private partnership worth R3.5billion between the City of Johannesburg, Basil Read Developers, Codevco as well as the community in South Africa.
Cosmo City emerged out of an urgent need to provide accommodation for the informal settlers of Zeverfontein and Riverbend who had been illegally occupying privately owned land 25 kilometres North West of the Johannesburg Central Business District.
Cosmo City continues to grow as a place of choice and was estimated to be around 70,000 in population in 2010 according to the main developers Basil Read Developers. That number has increased substantially over the years with backrooms being built, mostly in the RDP houses, and now even in the semi-financed houses and bonded houses. The recent developments and job opportunities in Cosmo City have created an influx into the area, which cannot be avoided.
I did a story on the Malibongwe Ridge Development project in Cosmo City in 2013; I got information from a Gugu Madonsela at the Human Settlements Division in Gauteng. This was just basis information of how the project would look like and around 5000 RDP houses would be built.
There were issues around the fact that there is no electricity, yet people living there have made illegal connections and there is never any loadshedding since the development was started?
There were concerns that the relevant people in the database are not the ones occupying the houses, I am keen to find out how the current occupants got there?
The impoverished people of the Itsoseng Informal Settlement in Cosmo City are still waiting for the City of Johannesburg to complete the Malibongwe Ridge Housing Development.
The development was launched in 2013 with great fanfare, and was supposed to comprise over 5000 housing units.
Here is the breakdown I was given by the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements in 2016:
Malibongwe Ridge Development layout plans make provision for the following land uses and typology splits:
Typology/ Land Use and Number of Units:
Fully subsidized (RDP) Duplex Houses – 1086
Rental Units adjoined to the Duplex Houses – 2186
Fully Subsidized (RDP) Row Housing Units –Semi detach simplex – 238
Finance Linked Units (FLISP) – 646
Bonded Units – 464
High Density Units- 3 storey walk ups – 894….making it a Total of 5514 units.
The above listed residential units will be supported by non-residential uses, which will include three Community Facilities; a Clinic; three Churches; two Schools; and two Business or Commercial Centres.
Fast forward to two weeks before the 2024 National and Provincial Government Elections on Wednesday 29 May 2024, ‘unknown’ residents moved into 400 houses and the shack dwellers took to the streets saying that the people moving in were ‘unknown’ to them and were not from the area, and they were not in the database, was part of the petition sent to African National Congress (ANC) Ward 100 Councillor.
Speaking to ANC Ward 100 Councillor, Lyborn Ndou, he told me he was not involved in the project as it happened before his term in office and the matter should be referred back to the Department of Human Settlements at the City of Johannesburg.
I have referred the matter to the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements spokesperson Tahir Sema since the marched by the shack-dwellers, via telephone calls, WhatsApp messages, and via email.
“On 31st March 2022, Codevco constructed 568 RDP walk up units at 95% completion and approved by the Department’s Quality Assurance Unit. The remaining 5% was achieved in December 2023 in terms of the installation of electricity by Eskom who were appointed by the City of Johannesburg Municipality.
There were issues around the fact that there is no electricity, has that that been sorted?
“Yes, this has been sorted out, Eskom has been appointed by the City of Johannesburg Municipality to install the electricity on all 568 completed units.
There were concerns that the relevant people in the database are not the ones occupying the houses?
“In 2008 the City of Joburg conducted a verification process of residents residing in the informal settlements of Malibogwe Ridge Development (Itsoseng).
“In 2022 the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements and City of Joburg verified all residents of Malibongwe Ridge on the NHNR and HSS in preparation for allocations to the Houses and Flats. The verification was done in the following source areas.
Extension 1 & 2
Extension 3
Sky Avenue
Marikana
Transit Camp.
The Gauteng Department of Human Settlements can confirm that all beneficiaries allocated in the Houses and Flats are approved on HSS and had several consultation meetings with the community and the Ward Councillor Lyborn Ndou on the allocation processes.
How much was spent on the project?
“The budget spent for the project is determined by the subsidy amount and differs per financial year, the department concluded.
